Recipe – BBQ Chicken Tikka and Onion Bhaji Kebabs

Onion bhajis are a really great ingredient, if you haven’t tried them in a chicken sandwich, I urge you to! I thought I’d try them on a skewer with chicken tikka as a BBQ treat and they were amazing!

For 4-6 people, you will need:

3 skinless chicken breasts

The juice of 1 lemon

150ml plain yoghurt

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1 tablespoon grated ginger

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon turmeric

1 half teaspoon cayenne pepper

Plus for the onion bhajis:

2 eggs

3 onions, thinly sliced

120g plain flour

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

Cube the chicken, prick all over each cube and place them in a bowl. pour over the lemon juice and set to one side.

Mix the yoghurt, garlic, ginger, cumin, turmeric and cayenne in another bowl. Stir into the chicken until it’s well coated. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Make the bhajis. Beat the eggs and add the onions, stirring until everything is coated. Add in the flour and spices, together with a little black pepper. Squash it all together with your hands (you will get mucky so run a tap!) until it’s well combined.

Heat a frying plan with a good glug of oil over a medium heat. Roll the mixture into balls roughly conker sized – a bit smaller than a golf ball. Pop in the frying pan and brown them for 3-4 minutes, turning regularly with a couple of teaspoons until all sides are browned nicely. Place the bhajis on a kitchen paper towel on a plate to dry out and cool slightly.

Once ready to BBQ, make up the skewers. I use metal ones as the wooden ones always burn, however well you soak them. Start with a cube of chicken and alternate with the bhajis. If they’re too large, cut them in half. You should end up with 4 or 5 large skewers.

BBQ them off the main heat of your BBQ (the top shelf or the edge) for at least 15 minutes, turning regularly. Finish then for 2-3 minutes over the main heat to brown off. Serve immediately.